Even If You Must Wait, Oldenberg Makes It A Pleasure

TAKE-OUT CUISINE

January 20, 2000|By Scott Joseph of The Sentinel Staff

Folks who live in the Oviedo area have a good takeout choice in Oldenberg Brewing Co., the restaurant/brewpub at the Oviedo Marketplace mall.

Of course, the only drawback to getting takeout food is that you can't get a flask of the handcrafted beers to go with it. Way too many legal concerns there. But an average order will take about 20 minutes, so that's plenty time to pull up a bar stool and enjoy a cold beverage while you wait.

I, on the other hand, phoned in my order ahead of time. The young woman who answered the phone had to put me on hold when I told her I wanted to order some food to go. She returned a few moments later and wrote down the order.

I requested the baked potato soup ($3.75) and Reuben wontons ($5.75), which had been a favorite when I visited the restaurant last year. For my entrees I got the wild mushroom meatloaf ($9.75) and millionaire's prime rib ($12.95), which included a house or Caesar salad. I chose house.

The order was waiting for me when I got there, darn the luck, so I paid my check and went on my brewless way.

Both entrees came with a big pile of mashed potatoes, and they turned out to be the best part of the meal. The baked potato soup was so thick that it didn't even spill out of the poorly sealed foam cup when it fell over on the way home. The toppings of melted cheese and bacon helped contain the spill.

The Reubens were good, especially with the Creole mustard that was provided for dipping. I'd have liked them more if they'd been a bit less greasy.

The prime rib was a bit dry, but otherwise a fair piece of meat. I thought the meatloaf was a little overprocessed and therefore too creamy-textured. I prefer my loaf a little coarser. Nothing wrong with the flavor, however.

If you don't call in your order, you can wait on one of the small leather love seats provided for people waiting for tables. Or you can sit on one of the leather sofas and still order a beer. Sometimes life is good.